nothin Dooley-O Leaves His Mark | New Haven Independent

Dooley‑O Leaves His Mark

David Sepulveda Photo

Lucy Gellman Photos

Dooley-O

One week, you’ll see him mixing melodies at one of Neville Wisdom’s fashion shows. The next, he might be in the back room of Rudy’s, spinning tracks late into the night as folks sway and hip-bump to them, lifting their beers in celebration. The next, celebrating old school hip-hop beside new. 

Now, there’s one way for New Haveners to get to know him a little bit more. Appearing on the latest episode of Alisa Bowen’s Culture Cocktail,” Dooley‑O — whose real name is Allen Jackson — spoke about his musical influences, childhood in the church, and hopes for New Haven’s music and DJ-ing scene moving forward.

It [my career] started in the basement of my mom’s house,” he said during the show. When I was little, 7 or 8 years old, when this whole hip-hop phenomenon started … I had family in New York, so we used to go down there. One day, some guy was rapping in the park — I started doing it when I got home. It gave me something to look forward to … long story short, hip-hop got into my soul and it never left. I like to keep it as pure as possible.”

It wasn’t always easy. In the 1980s, he recorded a record, but it was shelved soon after. He found that by the 90s, people had forgotten about the music of the 70s — what he calls the break beats, the soul” of hip hop. He wasn’t getting as far in the scene as he’d hoped. But he persevered. A record label in London got in touch with him, and he was able to record Watch My Moves. Things were looking up. 

Since, he has travelled nationally and internationally as a hip-hop and graffiti artist, but has always thought of New Haven as his home.

I believe in myself, so I kept doing what I do … I’ve been blessed all my life,” he added. (Click here to read about his Maya Angelou project on Henry Stret.)

That celebratory tone stayed for the second half of the episode, when real estate guru Dallas A. David joined Bowens to talk housing in New Haven and the surrounding areas. 

To listen to the full episode, click on the audio below or find it avalable for free download on Soundcloud, iTunes or any podcatcher under WNHH Community Radio.”

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